Tuesday, February 28, 2012

by Peter Van Allen
"Bottom Dollar Food said Tuesday it will open eight supermarkets in New Jersey through next year.

The expansion will create 300 jobs and more than double the number of stores the discount grocer has in the Garden State.

Stores in Trenton and Cinnaminson will open March 2, while a Bordentown location will open April 13.

The rest of the stores will open at dates to be announced later, with openings extending through next year.

“We have been pleased with customer reaction to our current five stores in New Jersey and we are very excited to continue serving customers at our additional locations in the market,” said Bottom Dollar Food President Meg Ham.

Here is the complete list of planned stores, including exact street addresses, where available:

• 2735 S. Broad St., Trenton (March 2);

• 1402 Route 130 North, Cinnaminson (March 2);

• Route 130 and Farnsworth Avenue, Bordentown (April 13);

• 422 S. Route 130, Edgewater Park;

• 156 W. Browning Road, Bellmawr;

• Broad Street, Woodbury;

• Route 38, Mount Holly

• Route 130 and Town Center Road, East Windsor.Stores average 18,000 square feet. Bottom Dollar opened its first supermarket in the Philadelphia market in October 2010. At present, Bottom Dollar has five other South Jersey stores, in Marlton, Turnersville, Cherry Hill, Clementon and Glassboro.

Bottom Dollar Food, based in Salisbury, N.C., has 43 stores in three states: Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Ohio. It is owned by the Belgian supermarket company Delhaize Group."http://www.omegare.com/

Monday, February 27, 2012

"The Philadelphia Industrial market ended the fourth quarter 2011 with a vacancy rate of 9.1%.

The vacancy rate was down over the previous quarter, with net absorption totaling positive 2,586,424 square feet in the fourth quarter. Vacant sublease space decreased in the quarter, ending the quarter at 2,925,157 square feet.

Saturday, February 25, 2012

"Tishman Construction Corporation (TCC) is managing the construction of the new, $160-million, 14-story, 510,000-square foot Philadelphia Family Courthouse for the Pennsylvania Department of General Services (DGS) at the northwest corner of 15th and Arch streets.

With excavation almost complete and foundations having begun, the building is planned to be completed by the Spring of 2014.

The new courthouse will unite the Domestic Relations and Juvenile Division facilities of the Philadelphia Family Court, currently located in two separate buildings, and will include 14 occupied floors above grade, three subterranean parking levels for 265 cars (including judges' parking) owned and operated by the Philadelphia Parking Authority, and one partial mechanical penthouse level.

The Family Courthouse project is the largest construction project in Philadelphia since the Pennsylvania Convention Center expansion and the renovation of the former 30th Street Post Office for the IRS.

Tishman successfully delivered the convention center three months early as part of a joint venture.

The courthouse building, designed by EwingCole, is pursuing LEED Silver certification.

Floors seven through 12 will house various court support office functions, and floors 13 and 14 are reserved for the Judges' Chambers and Court Administration. Throughout all floors of the building, separate vertical and horizontal circulation paths will be created for the public, judges and courts staff as well as prisoners."

"The $48 million Paseo Verde, a mixed-use transit-oriented project in the Ludlow district, is poised to start construction, thanks to a $5 million allocation of New Markets Tax Credits by Building America CDE Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of the AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust.

The developers are Jonathan Rose Cos., which specializes in "green" urban affordable housing, and Asociacion Puertorriquenos en Marcha (APM), a local community developer on a mission to reunite Ludlow with nearby Temple University and its surrounding neighborhoods. Paseo Verde is envisioned as a 1.9-acre cornerstone of Ludlow's public-private revitalization. Being designed for LEED Gold certification, the build-out will include a healthcare facility, social services, 30,000 square feet of commercial and retail space and 120 units of affordable and workforce housing.

The development site has been vacant for decades and is adjacent to the Temple University Regional Rail train station. Paseo Verde is expected to generate 150 construction jobs and create 42 permanent jobs in addition to supporting the retention of another 39 jobs in the local economy.

In the past 15 years, the AFL-CIO trust has provided more than $55 million for projects in Philadelphia, representing $82 million of development activity and resulting in 650 housing units and 500 construction jobs."http://www.omegare.com/

"Steel ORCA is developing a two-story, 700,000-square-foot data center facility on a site that resides within a 4,000-acre gated campus in Fairless Hills, PA. The mission critical facility will comprise more than 300,000 square feet of white space and is capable of providing power output up to 100 megawatts. The initial phase of development is scheduled to be completed in early 2013.

The Digital Utility Center was designed with redundant capacity and a state-of-the-art security system. Fiber is available in diverse paths on an MPLS network. The standard offering supports power and cooling of 130 watts to 200 watts per square foot, with additional capacities available. It also offers flexibility and scalability in physical configuration, electrical systems, HVAC systems and all associated supporting systems, including monitoring and controls.

Steel ORCA is "developing next-generation data centers with services that go far beyond those of a traditional mission critical facility," said Awad, adding that the center will be located within a Keystone Opportunity Zone - a tax abatement program that aims to serve as an economic development incentive."http://www.omegare.com/

"Save-A-Lot, the discount, limited-assortment grocery chain owned by SUPERVALU Inc. is opening four new stores in Pennsylvania in February and March, bringing the total number of Save-A-Lot stores in the state to 76.
The locations of the new stores, which average about 15,000 - 16,000 square feet, are scheduled to open as follows:

· 111 West 13th St., Tyrone (opened on Feb. 15)
· 19040 Park Ave., Meadville (opened on Feb. 22)
· 2209 West 12th, Erie (scheduled to open March 21)
· 1500 Main St., Peckville (scheduled to open in late March)

Since January 2011 and including these new stores, Save-A-Lot has added 11 new stores in Pennsylvania,
Each Save-A-Lot store carries an assortment of 1,200 to 1,500 of the most popular, in-demand every day grocery essentials."http://www.omegare.com/

Previously located in the Glen Mills area, they were excited to announce their move into this new, expanded facility.

6 Dickinson Drive is a 20,000 square foot atrium building built in 2000 with elevator service,an abundance of parking and is fully ADA compliant. There are three remaining suites which are available for lease or sale. Suite 200 contains 6,800 square feet, Suite 102 has 1,592 square feet and Suite 103 with 1,608 square feet. All three suites are vacant and ready for immediate occupancy.The lease rate is $20.80/SF gross and includes gas, electric and janitorial. http://www.omegare.com/

FL Smidth did a 7 year lease renewal/expansion of 58,874 sf of warehouse space at Riverside Business Center, 1139 Lehigh Avenue in Whitehall, PA. FL Smidth, is an international leading supplier of equipment, services and expertise for the cement and minerals industries. FL Smidth also has a location in Bethlehem, PA. http://www.flsmidth.com/

Parex USA, Inc., leased 29,281 sf of warehouse space. Parex USA, Inc., a subsidiary of ParexGroup, is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of specialty chemicals and ready-to-use mortars for the construction industry. This is Parex USA’s first Lehigh Valley location. http://www.parexusa.com/http://www.omegare.com/

"After nearly seven years, the owners of the former Franklin Mint property here have finally received zoning approval for a scaled down project on a 170-acre property fronting Baltimore Pike.

Middletown council signed off on a mixed-use zoning district ordinance that will permit a development team to construct 1.2 million square feet of space on the former headquarters of a company known for its sale of commemorative plates, dolls, coins and other baubles. The ordinance will allow for 300,000 square feet of retail space, 120,000 square feet of office space and the remainder in an age-restricted community with 200 residential units.

The developers had initially proposed much grander projects. One was a 3 million-square-foot town center that stunned this Delaware County community. It sparked a series of revised plans that also met with opposition and spurred a watchdog group called “Save Middletown” to form to monitor progress of the project.

At one point, the developers floated a by-right plan. That meant the developers didn’t need to go through the local approval process because the land is zoned appropriately for a proposed use, called for 1.5 million square feet of office and industrial space. That also wasn’t embraced. In general, council and residents had concerns over density, traffic, stormwater management and setbacks.

Through a lot of work, a final version emerged that was more palpable.

“It’s not necessarily what I would have chosen, but it’s consistent with the community,” said Dr. John Laskas Jr., a former councilman who helped establish Save Middletown. “Some of the elements are attractive and useful and council reflected the consensus of the community.”

The project went through a public airing and council was willing to listen to the community’s concerns, which is one of the biggest achievements to come out of the long and sometimes contentious process, Laskas said. When the development was initially proposed, it seemed as though it would sail through the approval process without any public input.

“We provided people access to the information and what was happening,” Laskas said. “That public outrage gave [council] cover.”

After opposition mounted, a charrette and other meetings were held involving a range of stakeholders including members of the development team, local residents, SEPTA and PennDOT to try to work out a version that would be acceptable.

One finally was formed.

“I’m happy with where we got compared with what we started,” said Councilman Mark Kirchgasser about the zoning ordinance that paves the way for the project.

Lorraine Bradshaw, who also sits on the township council, was the one holdout to vote against the final version and zoning change. She had concerns about parts of the ordinance that addressed signage, parking and other issues.

“I think between the town center plan and the plan that they have come up with there is a lot more that could have been done to make it more pedestrian-friendly,” Bradshaw said.

The Franklin Mint site has been in a state of suspense since around 2004 when it ceased operations in Middletown and its owners started to sell its products online. The developers bought the land in June 2005 and then began floating development proposals. The development team is comprised of Wolfson Verrichia Group of Plymouth Meeting, the McKee Group of Springfield, Pennrose Properties of Philadelphia and Dewey Cos. of Wayne.

What part of the project will be completed first is unknown and a representative from the development team couldn’t be reached for comment.

In the meantime, a new $80 million SEPTA train station adjacent to the site is making headway. Phase one of three has been completed and the station is scheduled to be completed by next year. Referred to as the Wawa station, it will sit off Route 452 on land between the mint site and land referred to as the Granite and Strine parcels. It is the endpoint of a three-mile extension of the R-3 Media-Elwyn line. The station is independent of the redevelopment of the Franklin Mint property.
Full story: http://tinyurl.com/72omzbehttp://www.omegare.com/

Thursday, February 23, 2012

I have a little history with this hospital. Back in 2003 I got 13 staples in my head at Roxborough Medical after my buddy slammed an SUV rear hatch on my head while I was trying to get in. RMH did a great job. Great story. Feel free to ask me about the next time we see each other. Preferably over beers.

Prime Healthcare Services, of Ontario, Calif., near Los Angeles, said Wednesday that it bought the hospital from Solis Healthcare L.L.C. but did not say what it paid.

Prime Healthcare, a for-profit company founded in 2001 by its chairman, Prem Reddy, a cardiologist, already owned or managed 15 hospitals, 14 in California and one in Texas.

"We look forward to improving the already excellent care provided at Roxborough Memorial Hospital and continuing the strong relationships with the local physicians and community," Reddy said in a news release.

He said the hospital, which employs 720 and has more than 200 doctors with privileges there, would continue its residency programs and nursing school.

In January, Prime was named one of the nation's 15 top health systems by Thomson Reuters, a list that included Jefferson Health and Geisinger Health Systems in Pennsylvania.

Prime, which had net income of $54.65 million on operating revenue of $830.62 million in the six months ended June 30, buys hospitals that are under financial duress, spokesman Edward Barrera said.

The most recent public financial data on Roxborough show that the hospital had an operating loss in fiscal 2010.

Solis had purchased Roxborough, along with Warminster Hospital, from Tenet Healthcare Corp. for $25.5 million in 2007. In 2003, Tenet had paid $23 million for the hospital, which was founded in 1890.

Prime has been an active bidder for distressed hospitals outside its home market of California. Most recently it appeared to be on track to buy Christ Hospital in Jersey City, N.J., but withdrew the offer after community leaders resisted the sale.

The company was also a bidder last year for hospitals in Hawaii and Rhode Island.

Joshua Nemzoff, a hospitals mergers and acquisitions specialist based in New Hope, said he investigated Prime as part of his work for an official handling the sale of the nonprofit Landmark Medical Systems Inc. in Woonsocket, R.I.

In California, Prime has faced allegations of Medicare billing fraud and has been in disputes with a major insurance company and a union.

"At first blush the press on them is not very good," Nemzoff said. "What really happened, when you get behind it, there's no substance to any of the accusations."

He added: "They are probably the most profitable health-care system I've ever seen. They are extremely well-run."http://www.omegare.com/

"Bank of America, which in the past couple of weeks, has announced plans to sell its ownership in three high-rises in New York and Charlotte, N.C., and others in Boston and Chicago, has come up with another way to downsize its real estate portfolio.

Bank of America is donating one of its four office buildings in Wilmington, DE, to a new non-profit organization supported by the Longwood Foundation.

The donation of the nine-story, 282,000-square-foot facility at 1200 N. French St. expands Bank of America's ongoing commitment to improving educational opportunities in Delaware. The value of the transaction was not disclosed.

The Longwood Foundation will create a new non-profit, the Community Education Building (CEB), to receive the bank's donation and operate the facility. The final transfer is expected by early 2013.

Bank of America employees who work in the Bracebridge IV facility will move to other parts of the Wilmington campus and other locations in the Delaware market."http://www.omegare.com/

"Shree Mata 4365 LLC purchased the Dorneyville Shopping Center located at 3245 Hamilton Blvd. in Allentown, PA for $16.35 million, or about $153 per square foot.

The 106,842-square-foot retail property is located in Lehigh County and sits on 8.45 acres. The building was delivered in 1967 with renovations completed in 2003. The shopping center is reportedly 96% occupied and is anchored by Bottom Dollar Food. Other tenants include Total Eye Care, Tappen Japanese Stake House, Pizza Hut, Chicken Lounge and many more. The center features more than 400 parking spaces."http://www.omegare.com/

"Charlotte, NC-based Snyder's-Lance, Inc. said Tuesday that it will construct a Research and Development Center near one of its largest bakeries in Hanover, PA. The project is scheduled to be complete in fourth quarter of 2012.

The 60,000 square foot, three story building was designed to earn LEED Silver Certification. The new center will also receive all of its electricity from the Company's twenty six acre solar panel farm located nearby.

"Our solar field provides roughly 30% of the electricity used by the Hanover manufacturing facility and will now supply 100% of the electricity for our new Research andDevelopment Center," said Carl E. Lee, Jr., President and Chief Operating Officer in a statement.

The center will research, develop and enhance new and existing products across the Company's entire line of consumer snack foods, including Snyder's of Hanover Pretzels, Lance Sandwich Crackers, and Cape Cod Potato Chips. Detailed product and quality comparisons, sensory evaluation and a full microbiology lab are only a few of the primary services to be provided in this new facility."http://www.omegare.com/

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

"The iconic 1616 Walnut Street building - listed on the National Register of Historic Places - has been purchased by Federal Capital Partners of Chevy Chase, Md., which is considering converting the office space to residential use.

The sale of the 25-story Art Deco building marks FCP's second investment in Center City Philadelphia, after a $7.5 million loan it made in July to back redevelopment of the Robert Morris Building at 1701 Arch St. from offices to apartments.

The Walnut Street property, currently 90 percent leased, was acquired through a joint venture with Philadelphia-based Cross Properties and 806 Capital L.L.C., also of Philadelphia. The venture purchased the building from Isard-Greenburg Co., which owned the building for more than 30 years, for an undisclosed amount.

According to Isard-Greenburg's website, the Pew family, which founded Sun Oil Co., once maintained a penthouse suite in the building.

Tenants were notified of the ownership change last week in a written statement from FCP managing partner.

"We found out last week," said William Bradley, a certified public accountant who maintains an office on the 15th floor there. "We were told the new owner wants to build condos and wants to go residential."

FCP said in a statement it may convert the building's use to residential "over time."

1616 Walnut is situated in the heart of Center City's high-end retail, dining and shopping district and close to Rittenhouse Square. It encompasses 188,560 square feet of office space, 7,210 square feet of retail space at street level, and a 160-space parking garage, according to FCP.

Built in 1929, the building was lauded as an architectural marvel at the time and received top honors the next year at the 12th International Buildings Congress in Budapest.

Its five-story parking garage made it one of the first properties in the city to include on-site parking. It was listed on the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places in 1982 and the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.

Its new owner - FCP - is a privately held real estate investment firm with interests in more than $3 billion in assets, including commercial and multifamily buildings. Besides Philadelphia, it has properties throughout the Mid-Atlantic region, including Washington, Baltimore, Virginia, and North Carolina."http://www.omegare.com/

"Water View Court Apartments, a 120-unit apartment property in Claymont, DE, has sold for $6.4 million, or $53,333 per unit.

Water View Court was sold to the student housing REIT as part of a 2008 portfolio acquisition of 704 units in Newark, DE near the University of Delaware campus.

Since the portfolio acquisition in 2008, the REIT renovated and rebranded the Newark properties as Studio Green Apartments, adding a clubhouse with a pool, lounge and indoor basketball court. Studio Green Apartments are owned and managed by CLV, or Campus Living Villages.

Water View Court Apartments is located at 361 Harbor Drive in Claymont, providing visibility from I-495. The property consists of 24 one bedroom and 96 two bedroom units. At the time of the sale the property was in fair physical condition. However, during the marketing process, economic occupancy had slipped to the low 80 percent range. The buyer intends to stabilize the asset by making physical improvements and implementing a more hands-on management approach."http://www.omegare.com/

"BPG Properties has sold the 314,521 square foot bulk distribution center at 200 West Stewart Huston in Sadsbury Township, PA to New York City-based AREA Property Partners for $16.2 million.

Jonathan Carpenter and James Wellschlager of Cassidy Turley's Capital Markets Group in Baltimore represented BPG Properties, Ltd. in this transaction.

In the second quarter of 2011, Communications Test Design, Inc. signed a five-year, full building lease at 200 West Stewart Huston Dr, extending the lease it executed in 2006 after BPG's acquisition of the property from EB Games, the former owner and occupant.

CTDI is a telecommunications service company headquartered in West Chester, PA.

Built in 2004, 200 West Stewart Huston is a 314,521 square foot modern distribution facility, situated on 27.9 acres of land allowing for expansion by up to approximately 89,400 square feet. The property offers 30 foot clear heights, 24 tailgate doors, one drive-in door and 14,000 square feet of finished office space.

"This Class A distribution facility, with expansion capabilities and full occupancy, offered the buyer credit and risk averse income in the near-term, while providing the potential for value creation in the future," said James S. Wellschlager, Senior Vice President at Cassidy Turley."http://www.omegare.com/

"Thomas Properties Group Inc. has kicked off a $25 million, multiphased capital improvement project at its Commerce Square office complex in Center City.

One Commerce Square was constructed in 1987 and Two Commerce Square was built in 1991 as part of a wave of new office towers to rise in the Central Business District and this is the first time since then the development has undergone such a major overhaul. The centerpiece of the work is a courtyard between the two, matching 41-story office buildings on Market Street between 20th and 21st streets. Commarts/Stantec of Boulder, Colo., designed the renovations.

It’s not often that buildings undergo such extensive and expensive renovations. In 2008, $10 million was spent on interior and exterior renovations at Centre Square, which included upgrades to the plaza. Back in 2002, United Plaza underwent an extensive, multimillion-dollar capital project. More recently, 1605 Arch St. had $7.5 million in cosmetic work completed. The upgrades are typically aimed at repositioning buildings as top-tier office structures and making them more attractive to existing and prospective tenants.

The work at Commerce Square is intended to make the property stand out in a competitive office market and seize on trends influencing how office buildings are used today and who uses them: a younger, more female work force. It also seeks to capture the changes that have taken place over time at the far west end of Market Street in Center City.

“There’s a live-work connection here that wasn’t here when the buildings were built 20 years ago,” said Randy Scott, executive vice president at Thomas Properties.

Several multifamily residential properties have cropped up in the last two decades in and around where Commerce Square is located and more are on the way. For example, PMC Property Group is converting 2040 Market St. into apartments and is looking to construct a 14-story residential building on a surface parking lot at 19th and Arch streets, and John Buck Co. is working on a 34-story apartment building at 21st and Chestnut streets.

The courtyard at Commerce Square, which measures over an acre, is undergoing a complete re-do. While some of the work addresses some technical issues, such as waterproofing over a parking structure, the design attempts to create an inviting public space for office tenants and those living nearby. The fountain will be rebuilt, new furniture, umbrellas and landscaping will be put in and a 22-foot by 20-foot “media wall,” or large television screen, will cover a portion of a wall that will have content rotating on it.

Another aspect of the work will focus on blending activity going on in the courtyard with Market Street.

“The themes to this upgrade is to better engage the street with the public space,” Scott said. “As a space it’s fabulous but as a commercial asset we can do a better job drawing people in.”

To that end, two illuminated 42-foot pylons will jut up and create an entry way on Market Street into the courtyard. In addition, a low wall with plants and shrubs will come out to the sidewalk along Market, which will help define the area and give Thomas Realty new space to put the names of tenants in the building. Many companies find such signage appealing but it’s limited now at the building.

While two restaurants now occupy space around the courtyard, the landlord is looking to put a third one in 8,000 square feet of space that is currently vacant.

“We’re trying to create a destination here,” said Morgan Murray, who handles leasing at Thomas Realty Partners, a brokerage affiliate of Thomas Realty.

The main lobbies will also get some attention though their basic structure will remain.

“They are sort of museum-like now,” Scott said.

Dark and uninviting, the lobbies will be brightened up with better lighting and made more welcoming to encourage people to linger. For example, an area where people can hang out with their laptops and a cup of coffee will be installed.

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

"TRC Electronics will occupy 16,950 square feet of industrial space located at 101-B Domorah Drive, at Montgomeryville Industrial Center in Montgomery County, PA. This 33,900 square foot building is a modern, one-story industrial facility that features 3,085 SF of office space, 20’ clear ceiling height, 4 tailgates and 1 drive-in door. The announcement of the new TRC headquarters comes on the eve of TRC's 30th Anniversary as a leading provider of power supply solutions. This bold move provides a progressive workspace that better suits TRC’s demanding facility requirements. It is TRC’s critical mission to be second to none and provide the greatest service and power supply solutions to their business partners. TRC Electronics has supported over 26,000 businesses and carries over 10,000 power solutions from the world's leading manufacturers of power supply technology.

TRC Electronics is a well established company with a confident outlook. Montgomeryville is an ideal fit, located in the most business-friendly state in the Northeast. The move marks an exciting new era for the company," remarked company president, Stephen Lagomarsino, adding, "As an industry-leader, it’s important for us to have a global HQ that reflects the strength of our company and encapsulates the TRC vision; a place where we can welcome our partners from across the globe and where our employees feel proud to work. Our move will strengthen our company as we escape the shackles of New Jersey’s high taxes on business." http://www.omegare.com/

The Valley Forge Casino Resort has set an official opening date of March 31, it said Tuesday.

The King of Prussia, Pa., casino had previously said only that it would open this spring.

Plans call for 600 slot machines and 50 table games, including blackjack, craps and roulette. The facility will also have 486 guest rooms and suites.
It will produce 650 jobs.
Final plans are still subject to approval by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board. It will be the state’s 11th casino.http://www.omegare.com/

Monday, February 13, 2012

"Weis Markets Inc. on Monday said it was buying three Genuardi's supermarkets from Safeway Inc. - locations on Ridge Pike in Conshohocken, Old Dublin Pike in Doylestown, and West Germantown Pike in Norristown.

No sale price was disclosed.

Weis said the suburban Philadelphia stores would operate under the Genuardi's name until the deal was finalized.

The three stores being acquired by Weis are among eight supermarkets that Safeway, Genuardi's parent company, said it would try to sell.

In January, Safeway announced an agreement to sell 16 of its 27 Genuardi's supermarkters to Giant Food Stores for $106 million.

"We're extremely pleased to be adding these stores to our store base," Weis Markets' president and chief executive David J. Hepfinger said in a news release. "We look forward to serving these communities as the lead local merchant as we have in 33 counties throughout central, eastern and northeastern Pennsylvania. We will also be reaching out to the associates of these stores to discuss employment with our company."

Weis Markets was founded 100 years ago and today operates 161 stores in Pennsylvania, Maryland, New York, New Jersey, and West Virginia."http://www.omegare.com/

Sunday, February 12, 2012

"Plans to convert the famed Blue Horizon on North Broad Street into a hotel with two restaurants are moving forward, its developers say.

But a new notion - spurred by numerous inquiries the developers say they've received over the last month - also would have it housing a venue for boxing - the very thing the original Blue Horizon was known for.

"We are considering it. It is known internationally as a boxing venue," said Scott Orens of Orens Bros. Real Estate Inc., co-owner and co-developer of the property with Mosaic Development Partners of West Philadelphia.

"We have to make it so that the guests in the restaurants and hotel are compatible with the people watching boxing," Orens said. "We have to make sure that all blends together in a functional kind of way."
In early August, plans for converting the Blue Horizon, on the 1300 block of North Broad Street, into a hotel to cater to Temple students and their families were announced. The hotel also would help meet new room demand resulting from the expanded Convention Center.

The 84-room hotel is being rebuilt with the aid of a $6 million state grant from the Corbett administration. Details about the restaurants, one of which will be a catering hall, are still being worked out.

Orens said more than half of the building would be restored, and the rest - including the hotel - would be ground-up development.

The site remains under agreement for a change of ownership for an undisclosed amount, he said.

Orens said Thursday that work on the 146-year-old property likely would start at the end of May, to meet the grant's timeline requirement.

"Construction will begin shortly. . . . We are talking to several different flagship hotels," he said. "It's still very difficult these days to get financing. You can't just walk to a corner bank and fill out an application. [But] I absolutely believe it will happen."

Leslie Lewis, who runs Mosaic Partners with Greg Reaves, said the developers were getting the proper approvals and zoning from the city for the hotel conversion.

"There are a lot of pieces still being put together," Lewis said. "We've garnered a lot of support."

That includes support from Vernoca Michael, Blue Horizon president and CEO, whose vision has been "to preserve the facility and not tear it down." The venue hosted its last fight on June 4, 2010.

"We wanted to have it as a place for entertainment, restaurants, a museum for boxing, and of course, a hotel," Michael said. "Mosaic was the one group that wanted to work with my vision."

The Blue Horizon occupies what once were three mansions, built in 1865 and combined by the Loyal Order of the Moose into one large lodge in 1912.

In 1961, the property became the Blue Horizon, going on to host IBF/USBA super-middleweight championship bouts and IBC and NABC state titles and Hispanic championships. Sugar Ray Leonard, Bernard Hopkins, and Arturo Gatti were among the 50 fighters who fought there and went on to win world titles.

In 2005, Ring magazine called the Blue Horizon "the best place to watch a boxing match." But by summer 2010, the venue had closed because of tax problems.

For the Blue Horizon to stay true to its boxing heritage, Orens said, some issues have to be ironed out.

"There are concerns from the neighborhood about previous events . . . where patrons may have taken their rowdiness outside," he said. "But our venue will be much nicer, and having actual fights is . . . absolutely on the table and being discussed."

Phone calls have been streaming in, Lewis added, from "people that follow the sport that really want to have this facility still host some fights. Because of the authenticity of the experience, they feel it would be a big loss to the boxing community. About a month ago, we started definitely examining it."

But changes would be needed to accommodate today's fights.

"The Blue Horizon, as is, does not compete well with the existing newer and larger venues," Orens said. "It is not up to code. It doesn't have a sprinkler system. When you went there, you sat almost next to the ring.

"Money's tight for Pennsylvania. But last month, a state agency went to Wall Street and borrowed $107 million to enrich a California hedge fund, a Wall Street bank, and other speculators in a Harrisburg office building.

Result: Investors who bought bonds tied to the city's Forum Place at deep discounts are being paid full price to turn them in, giving them millions in profit.

But state officials say that's still a good deal for taxpayers - because the new arrangement will allow state workers to park their cars at a discount.

Our story opens in 1998, when the Dauphin County General Authority, one of the many local financing agencies that keep politicians and their bankers, lawyers, and advisers busy, raised $86 million - through bonds sold to Merrill Lynch, PaineWebber, First Union mutual funds, and Wilmington Trust - to buy Forum Place.

But in 2001, Forum's main tenant, PennDot, moved out. As rent stopped, cash for bond payments dried up. (The firm that arranged the financing, Dolphin & Bradbury Inc., was fined $800,000 by the Securities and Exchange Commission for not warning investors.)

As the bonds defaulted, investors cut their losses and sold at discounts approaching 50 percent. Most were bought by an arm of Saybrook Fund Advisors L.L.C., Santa Monica, Calif. Citigroup bought bonds with a face value of $12 million.

Saybrook found the building poorly managed. Comanaging partner Jon P. Schotz told me his firm went straight to work "fixing things the way we wanted, as opposed to the way those chuckleheads did."

Soon, Pennsylvania agencies were moving back to Forum Place. The authority's finances slowly mended, Schotz told me. "It would take them 10 years" to replace the lost bond payments, he said. "Maybe 15."

Investors didn't want to wait. They sued to make the authority pay faster. Commonwealth Court said no.

Saybrook kept recruiting tenants. In 2009, the state signed a 25-year lease to fill Forum Place.

A lease that long "happens very rarely. Generic office space is easily replicated. If you're leasing for 25 years, why don't you just buy it?"

But the Rendell administration tended to sell state office buildings (like the one in Philadelphia, to developer Bart Blatstein, for $25 million, later cut to $21 million), and lease private space instead.

Why lock in so long? "The reason we did the long-term leases, we were trying to consolidate space from a lot of smaller locations, in a more centralized master lease," James Creedon, who headed Gov. Rendell's Department of General Services, told me. Forum Place fit; Saybrook's price was a "long-term relationship."

After Gov. Corbett took over, Saybrook proposed that the state buy out Saybrook's old Dauphin County General Authority bonds, with payments equal to its old rents.

"The state didn't have any obligation to pay on the bonds," Schotz acknowledged. So Saybrook sweetened the deal: It gave the state control over parking, enabling it to avoid a threatened increase in Harrisburg parking costs, said Troy Thompson, spokesman for the state Department of General Services.

The deal also gave the state the right to buy the building for $1 at the end of its long lease if it wants.

The new bonds are issued by the Pennsylvania Economic Development Financing Authority. In a letter to Internal Revenue Service chief counsel William Wilkins, Mark Schwartz, a Haverford lawyer who helped draft the law that set up PEDFA, called the new bond a "perversion" of the agency's old focus on funding "small manufacturing entities."

Schwartz urged the IRS to review the bonds' tax status. He calls the deal "a bailout" for people who don't need one - inappropriate in a state intent on cutting costs."http://www.omegare.com/

"The owners of the Divine Lorraine Hotel have entered into an agreement with a local developer who would buy and renovate the derelict landmark on North Broad Street, a member of the ownership group said Friday.

Michael Treacy Jr., one of the partners that owns the building, would not identify the company, but said the Philadelphia developer had an option to take over the abandoned hotel and an adjacent three-acre vacant lot.

The potential buyer is examining the specifics of a deal, he said.

"We should know within 30 days of their due diligence if they will proceed or not," Treacy said. "All indications are looking good."

Treacy and his father, Michael Sr., a local builder, were part of an investor group that paid $10 million in 2006 for the 118-year-old building and land. The other partners were Sunergy Housing, a Dutch firm, and Michigan-based NSI Real Estate Group.

The partnership had ambitious plans to restore the hotel and build residential towers on the vacant lot. But the economic downturn derailed the project.

"The financial collapse made it impossible to get funding to do the project," Treacy said.

In recent months, political pressure has been building for the owners to sell the blighted property.

Mayor Nutter last Monday told the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce that the Divine Lorraine was standing in the way of a rebirth of North Broad Street and that he wanted to see it restored.

The current owners owe the city $702,779.82 in back taxes and defaulted on a construction loan from the union-owned Amalgamated Bank of New York.

Treacy said the option with the Philadelphia developer was "arranged with the bank and us."

This is the fourth potential deal to sell the Divine Lorraine in recent years, Treacy said. He did not know what the plans might be for a new owner."http://www.omegare.com/

by Natalie Kostelni
RedGo Development is taking a gamble on this Camden County community that sits midway between Philadelphia and Atlantic City. It bought 32 acres on White Horse Pike.

The undeveloped land neighbors the Virtua Berlin Hospital, borders Jackson Road and is across from the Berlin Shopping Center where a Kmart serves as the anchor. The land was bought at an auction.

The property had been owned by an undisclosed local family who held onto it since the 1960s but never developed it.

It’s the first time RedGo, based in West Chester and with multiple projects in Philadelphia’s western suburbs, has ventured into South Jersey. The company was formed in 1998.

“We’re always trying to expand our focus into other areas,” said Fred Goebert, president of RedGo. “South Jersey has always been in our target zone.”

In the last two years, Goebert figured RedGo had made $200 million in bids on at least a dozen South Jersey properties.

“We finally had some luck,” he said.

The parcel has a lot of potential, Goebert said. It has 1,600 feet of frontage on White Horse Pike and its proximity to Virtua Berlin Hospital might lend itself to uses associated with the hospital. However, Goebert hasn’t completed any market studies and is just beginning to evaluate how RedGo might develop it. It’s zoned for retail and office.

It hasn’t been easy for Berlin to attract new businesses to the community or to lure developers to vacant parcels. A 44-acre site that Owens Corning Fiberglas Corp. owns at 160 Jackson Road has sat undeveloped since 1993 when the company decided to close the calcium silicate plant and cut 100 jobs there.

“We have had some improvement along White Horse Pike with some of the older buildings but it’s a slow process especially with the economy now,” said Berlin Borough Mayor John Armano.

“The businesses in town are hanging on by a shoestring. It’s tough. No one wants to spend the company. No one wants to loan money.”

A bank drew up plans not long ago to build a new branch on two acres on White Horse Pike (Route 30) but decided to walk away from the idea, Armano said. The property was priced way too high, he said.

Though it is zoned for office, the demand for new office space is weak in South Jersey.

“We have 18 percent vacancy in good areas,” he said, adding that medical offices might work since the hospital is so close.

Goebert is optimistic. He views the vacant land he bought, the Owens Corning site and other parcels as ripe for new construction.

“From this site all the way to Route 73 there is a lot of vacant land and there will definitely be some big development going on there between now and over the next decade,” Goebert said.
Full story: http://tinyurl.com/7habe98http://www.omegare.com/

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Sunday, February 5, 2012

by Natalie Kostelni
"BASF Corp. has put up for sale a 23-building complex here, in which some buildings have been in use for 80 years.

The campus at 300 Brookside Ave. totals 284,080 square feet in a mix of lab, office, warehouse and other space. BASF, a chemical company, inherited the property when it bought Cognis Corp., a specialty chemical company.

The facility has connections to the American Chemical Paint Co., which was formed in Philadelphia in 1914 by James H. Gravell. The company relocated to Ambler in a new plant constructed in 1922. The company’s first product was Deoxidine, a rust inhibitor for metal that was used in the car industry and other areas.

American Chemical later changed its name to AmChem Products Inc. and was bought by Union Carbide Corp. in 1977. Three years later, Henkel bought AmChem. Henkel established in 1999 an independent subsidiary for biotechnologies and environmental technologies under the name Cognis BV. For years, the Ambler campus was referred to as the Cognis site for operations working out of it.

Cognis was sold to a consortium of private equity firms in 2000. In December 2010, BASF bought Cognis, which is a smaller competitor based in Luxembourg.

BASF decided last March that the office and laboratory activities in Ambler would cease by the end of the first quarter of the year, with operations integrated into existing BASF businesses in Florham Park, N.J.; Charlotte, N.C.; Tarrytown, N.Y; and Wyandotte, Mich., said John Schmidt, a BASF spokesman.

All BASF lab employees will be relocated to new locations by March 31. After that, a small team of maintenance workers will remain at the site through the end of this year, Schmidt said. In all, 76 employees worked from the site.

Eight tenants occupy the space. About 54,000 square feet of the office and 44,000 square feet of lab space will soon become vacated.

No asking price has been set for the campus, however, the sale price will be ultimately affected by whether the vacant space gets released. With that space filled, an investor will find more value in the property and maintain it in its current state.

A developer might envision redeveloping a portion of the property and selectively demolishing some buildings while retaining the existing space currently being used by tenants. A master plan of the property was recently designed by KlingStubbins that gives one blueprint for how the campus could be redeveloped.

by Natalie Kostelni
"Drexel University will break ground this month on a $97.6 million mixed-use development that will establish a new gateway to the school on Chestnut Street and be among the first projects that begin to transform its urban campus.

In what is a first for Drexel, the school entered into a private partnership with American Campus Communities of Austin, Texas, to construct three buildings totaling 361,200 square feet on land it owns on Chestnut between 32nd and 33rd streets. Under the agreement, American Campus has a 70-year ground lease with Drexel and will also manage the property.

“If this is successful, this will be the first of several,” said John A. Fry, president of Drexel, in a December interview about the development plans.

Such arrangements with private developers have become more common for universities. The University of Pennsylvania, where Fry spent part of his career as executive vice president and helped oversee a series of construction projects that reinvigorated the Penn campus and its surrounding neighborhood, was an early convert to the practice and completed several developments under such arrangements.

Drexel anticipates striking at least a couple more of these agreements in the near future, said Jim Tucker, senior vice president of student and administrative services. It was decided the school would engage third-party developers on all non-academic buildings and use debt service and capital funds on academic facilities. This spring it will seek to do an even larger but similar mixed-use complex at 34th Street and Lancaster Avenue that will cost between $125 million and $150 million and will use an outside developer to complete the work.

Ten regional and national developers vied for the Chestnut Street project, Tucker said. American Campus was selected after a thorough vetting, he said. The company is a real estate investment trust that focuses on the construction, ownership and management of student housing properties across the country. It owns University Crossings, a development off Drexel’s campus, and constructed University Village, an off-campus student housing project for Temple University.

American Campus was eager to get another project in Philadelphia and with Drexel.

“We believe Drexel is one of the top private universities in the United States and we became even more enthused when Fry announced his growth vision for the institution,” said William C. Bayless Jr., chief executive officer and president of American in an email. “Additionally, the incredible site that Drexel brought to the table with the vision of it being the gateway to University City is a strong feature of this project. This project is expected to be one of our flagship communities and will be similar to our other urban high-density projects in Portland, Honolulu and Newark.”

Combined with the retail space, the Chestnut Street project will create 869 new beds for Drexel students and create a vibrant anchor for the campus. One of Fry’s goals is to revitalize Drexel’s campus, make it more pedestrian friendly and breath new life into the surrounding community.

The development will stand on an L-shaped site that’s about an acre in size. The parcel is a combination of a setback and a sunken garden that was “kind of pretty but never used,” said Bob Francis, who heads up the facilities department at Drexel. “We’re talking about strips of land that were not put in any productive use especially in an urban setting.”

The project will consist of two, eight-story buildings on Chestnut Street. The structures were designed with an open corridor to the school’s Creese Student Center. They will have retail space on the first two floors and townhouse-style student housing on the remaining six stories. In addition, a 19-story residential hall will be constructed behind the two structures.

In all, 30,000 square feet of retail will be created and already there is interest in the space, Francis said.

“There’s tremendous depth of market for every category who wants to open up and sign leases,” he said. “We expect to be fully leased very soon and before construction is done.”

"Two major office properties have come up for sale in what may be a sign the local investment market is gaining traction.

Aramark Tower in Center City and Bishops Gate in Mount Laurel, N.J., are for sale and will test two different office markets appeal to commercial property buyers. They will also offer a glimpse into whether investors are willing to strike big office deals.

Property sales last year rose by 57 percent to $220 billion, according to Real Capital Analytics. Retail and apartment properties led the way, and office buildings struggled across the board. Locally, that was also the case. 1700 Market St. in Center City got sold but other buildings, such as the Curtis Center, Public Ledger and Two Penn Center, hit hurdles.

Aramark Tower is a 32-story, 620,000-square-foot office building at 1101 Market St. Girard Estate bought it in 2002 for more than $80.5 million. The property is fully leased, and its lead tenants are Aramark Corp., which makes its headquarters there and occupies roughly 60 percent of the building. The remainder of the offices are occupied by the city of Philadelphia, a law firm and other companies.

This isn’t the first time Girard has tried to unload Aramark. In 2007, Grasso Holdings tied it up in a deal valued at $101 million but that fell apart months later. The tower was pulled from the market as the credit freeze and recession worsened.

Now, Girard is willing to see if a buyer is interested in the building.

“As a fiduciary for the school, they are looking at this asset and trying to determine what the market will pay for it. At a certain price, they are a seller but like any well-capitalized owner, at a certain price, they are not.”

Since the investment market is still going through the process of being re-stabilized, it’s difficult to gauge how much Aramark might trade for though some have estimated it could command as much as $115 million.

The other property up for sale, Bishops Gate, is owned by iStar Financial, which bought the property in 2003 for $79.8 million. It’s a two-building complex referred to as Bishops Gate I and II and has a combined total 483,896 square feet. It sits within the Bishops Gate Corporate Campus. Both buildings are fully occupied by PHH Mortgage Corp., which uses the space as its headquarters for its 2,900 employees. PHH has more than 10 years left on its lease.

Bishops Gate I is at One Mortgage Way and totals 376,122 square feet. Bishops Gate II at 2001 Bishops Gate Blvd. totals 107,774 square feet. Both facilities were constructed in 1999.

“There are a lot of investors who like to buy properties that are net leased with 10 or more years,” he said. “They specialize in that type of business.”

The predictability of a complex such as this is what attracts them to buy it, he said.

Friday, February 3, 2012

"The Philadelphia office market is beginning to suffer from an emerging real estate trend: tenants who take less space even though the number of employees remains the same or may even grow.

Several companies who signed large leases within the last year, including GlaxoSmithKline, Janney Montgomery Scott, and Reed Smith, shrank the amount of space they leased and others currently in the market are seeking to do the same. Referred to as space utilization, these firms sought to create more open, modern office environments that rely on collaborative space and take into account the actual amount of time an employee spends in the office.

A study by Francis Cauffman, a Philadelphia architectural firm, concluded a majority of offices are occupied just 45 percent of the time and employees conduct 70 percent of their work in group settings. The heyday of the cubicle, where people toil in their own personal space that typically totaled well over 200 square feet, may well be over. How much is now sought? Just over 120 square feet or less. The poster child is when GlaxoSmithKline relocates out of One Franklin Plaza, a 624,000-square-foot building, and moves to the Navy Yard next year.

While this translates into companies needing less office space and savings on their real estate expenses, it also has meant landlords are becoming saddled with unexpected vacancies.

It will catch up with some markets faster than others depending on what sectors are dominante. While accounting, insurance and other firms are ripe for that type of off-site work and office set up, it doesn’t fit for every one.

As a result of the new layout, companies are flipping the traditional ratio between office and open space. Many tenants are coming out of offices they have occupied for the last 15 to 20 years and decided to change their footprint to now have 70 percent open space and 30 percent office space.

“If you had to project into the future, the trend is more and more about reducing the footprint per employee."
Firms are also taking into account improvements in technology and communication that spurs more telecommuting. While space utilization is contributing to the overall vacancy rate of 14.1 percent in Center City, the office buildings with the 10 largest pockets of empty space also show other factors at work. Some of the vacancies, such as what is seen at 10 Penn Center, is a result of tenants moving in to fancier office space on the cheap. There’s also still a hangover from 2008 and 2009 when companies made layoffs during the height of the recession.

“The analogy I use is you’re a size nine in size 12 shoes. Some firms have not right-sized and when they do right-size, you’re going to find every one is taking less space.”

Vacancies in two buildings, 401 Market St. and 801 Market, reflect downsizing that’s happened in banking. At 401 Market, Wells Fargo vacated an 87,000-square-foot gap, and Citizens Bank moved out of 125,000 square feet at 801 Market. The 135,000-square-foot vacancy at 1650 Arch St. is the result of the dissolution of law firm Wolf Block.

Back filling the vacancies will be a challenge and in the meantime it has meant a downward pressure on rents.

“Rents are driven by demand and demand is dropping. The only things that can stabilize Center City rents are two things: job creation, and that hasn’t happened too much, and buildings formerly used as office space coming off line and finding another use.”
Full story: http://tinyurl.com/7556pyrhttp://www.omegare.com/

Five Greentree Centre is a 165,956-square-foot, four-story office building located at 525 West Lincoln Drive in the Greentree Corporate Centre. 30 Lake Center Drive is a 40,287-square-foot, single-story office building located at 30 Lake Center Executive Parkway in the Lake Center Executive Park. Both buildings were developed in 1986 and are situated off route 73.

Tequesta has grown its southern New Jersey office portfolio to six buildings totaling 395,000 square feet. In late 2010, the firm purchased 8000 Lincoln Drive, One Greentree Centre at 9000 Lincoln Drive, Two Greentree Centre at 10,000 Lincoln Drive and 10 Lake Center Drive from Brandywine, all commercial buildings in Marlton.http://www.omegare.com/

"Habitat for Humanity officials have agreed to terms with Giant Food Stores that will set the stage for the opening of a ReStore at the old Acme building in the New Garden Shopping Center.
Charles ‘Chip” Huston, executive director for Habitat for Humanity of Chester County, said the ReStore should be open by the end of April. It will be Habitat’s 18th ReStore in Pennsylvania.
The store will be similar to Habitat’s ReStore in Caln Township, but in addition to selling furniture, tools, fixtures and appliances, it will also sell bedspreads, sheets, clothing and curtains.
Habitat’s ReStore will occupy about 18,000 square feet of space, or about one-third of the Acme building that has been vacant for the past five years. The remainder of the space will be leased by Giant to two other businesses that plan to open sometime this year."
Full story: http://tinyurl.com/82xxfor

About Me

Joe O’Donnell has been in commercial real estate for over 15 years. His expertise is the corporate tenant/buyer representation as well as landlord for office, industrial and retail buildings. He primarily works the surrounding Montgomery, Chester and Bucks County markets.